North Sydney: school traffic congestion fuels calls for extra police, ranger patrols

Traffic mayhem on streets surrounding north shore schools has sparked backlash from residents, prompting the local mayor to tour schools and encourage the use of public transport.

Traffic mayhem on streets surrounding north shore schools is sparking fresh backlash from residents and fuelling calls for more students to take public transport or walk to school.

A series of recent community meetings in the North Sydney Council area has heard complaints over a rise in school-related traffic congestion including instances of cars blocking main roads, driveways and intersections during pick-up and drop-off runs.

Problem areas identified by fed-up residents include streets surrounding Wenona School in North Sydney and the Redlands Junior Campus in Cremorne where cars often queue on Rangers Rd as they wait to turn into Alister St to pick up pupils.

The problem has become so bad that North Sydney Mayor Zoe Baker is now touring local schools to encourage less reliance on cars.

Cremorne resident John Lucas believes congestion during afternoon pick-up periods at the Redlands campus was exacerbated by an increase in student numbers at the school and lack of street parking spaces.

A photo of cars queuing near Redlands School.

“From 3pm it’s a conga line of brand new expensive four-wheel-drives of parents all heading east on Rangers Rd and trying to turn into Alister St,” he said.

“The problem is because Alister St is already full with cars they end up idling on Ranger Rd and every afternoon all you hear is car horns and occasionally the odd person yelling and going crazy.

Cremorne resident John Lucas is impacted by school traffic congestion.

“It’s like checking in at the airport – there’s queues and frustration and any through traffic has to sit there and wait or take a real risk and get into the oncoming lane of traffic for 50m to overtake when it’s safe.”

Cathy Clarke, who also lives opposite the Redlands Junior Campus in Cremorne, believes the issue had been heightened by two years of Covid-19 restrictions which has seen fewer students use public transport to access schools.

“The tendency I think is for people not to walk and instead hop in the car,” she said.

“The real difficulty I have is that parents park on the road and expect you to go past them, completely ignoring the fact there’s a double line meaning you can’t overtake.

Residents say traffic is also congested outside Wenona School.

“During the pick-up hours there’s a steady stream of cars and you can’t get out of your driveway and have to avoid driving anywhere during that time.”

In a statement, a Redlands School spokesman said the safety and wellbeing of students and the community were its highest priority.

“As with all schools, pick up and drop off times are very busy. We continue to take proactive steps to ease traffic congestion during these busy periods,” he said.

“We are continually reviewing and enhancing our traffic management procedures with the support and guidance of independent traffic management consultants and North Sydney Council.”

A photo of cars near Redlands School.

A Wenona School spokeswoman said traffic outside the school gates could be eased by the new Sydney Metro rail stop due to open in North Sydney in 2024.

“Wenona is aware of some traffic congestion that occurs around our campus during student drop-off and pick-up times,” she said.

“Road safety and the amenity of our neighbours are a priority. We continue to remind our community in regard to both, and encourage our students to use public transport whenever possible.

“Wenona is grateful for the progress being made on the much-needed Victoria Cross Station development, which will be located beneath Miller Street and commence operation in 2024.”

North Sydney Mayor Zoe Baker is now in the process of visiting schools to encourage students to use public transport, walk or cycle to school.

North Sydney Mayor Zoe Baker is touring schools to promote green travel plans.

“There are strong community concerns about some of the larger schools in the area and it’s been accelerated by a demonstrable decline in the number of people using public transport over the past two years,” she said.

“Part of the issue is we also have more schools per capita than anywhere else in Australia in a dense urban environment.

“I’ll be strongly encouraging some of the larger schools to adopt a green travel plan and also looking at how schools manage their parking.”

The Harrison and Brightmore Precinct Committees, which are made up of local residents in North Sydney, have both called on the council to instigate regular ranger patrols during pick up and drop off times, along with increased police checks.